This week I want to go over some of the different types of headaches. There are quite a number of types of headaches, but the most common type is classified as a tension headache, which accounts for about 38 percent of headaches. The next most common type of headache is the migraine headache, which accounts for about 10 percent of headaches.

So what’s the difference? Symptomatically, tension headaches manifest as dull, achy, or tight pain, typically on both sides of the head. A migraine manifests as throbbing pain, generally localized to one side of the head. Migraines are often proceeded by what is called an aura. This aura can manifest as almost any type of sensory disturbance, visual, auditory, taste, or touch depending of the area of the brain being effected.

Ten years ago tension and migraine headaches were thought to be caused by completely different mechanisms. Today, it is generally thought that both these types of headaches are different manifestations of the same generally problem. That problem basically is an issue with the brains natural pain regulation centers. The body is full of nerves that detect pain, and all nerves, including pain nerves, are constantly firing signals to the brain.

If the pain nerves are further stimulated, for example through trauma, then the pain nerves will fire at a higher frequency, creating a stronger signal in the brain. Even at rest, with no increased pain signal to report, the brain still receives constant input from the pain nerves. However, the brain has an innate system to block those signals from reaching consciousness.

So the brain actually blocks pain naturally, constantly and efficiently. It is now believed that people who suffer these chronic headaches have brains that do not block the normal pain signals with normal efficiency. This sets up an environment that allows any extra pain stimulus to overwhelm the already deficient pain blocking centers, and cause the brain to allow pain to be felt that should normally be blocked. Now the nerves that detect pain for the head originate in the spine, specifically the upper neck.

This means that face pain, jaw pain, any head pain at all, synapses into the upper neck. This common pain pathway helps explain why so many different inputs can trigger headaches. Common triggers include: bright light, vision fatigue, neck muscle fatigue, jaw irritation, neck joint irritation, ear problems, even smells can be a trigger. This doesn’t include issues that affect the brain itself, things like oxygen saturation, blood sugar, hormonal imbalances and nutritional deficiencies. So when we look at treating headaches, we are really looking at reducing pain input, and improving the stability of the brain.

This is why so many different therapies can be effective for treating headaches, but no single one seems to be completely effective. For some, chiropractic which aims at improving neck joint function is very effective. For others, acupuncture that stimulates the natural pain blocking systems works well.